


Hold Your Horses

by TrasBen



Series: Skeleton Shipping [8]
Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Bandit Blue, Bandit Razz, Fire Safety, Guns, Horses, Kidnapping, Lieutenant Red, M/M, Polyamory, Sheriff Edge, Soulmates, Swapfell Sans (Undertale), These are some bad boys right here, Underfell Fuku Fire (Undertale), Underfell Grillby (Undertale), Underfell Papyrus (Undertale), Underfell Sans (Undertale), Underswap Sans (Undertale), Underswap Sans/Swapfell Sans (Undertale), Underswap Sans/Underfell Sans/Swapfell Sans (Undertale), Wild West AU, rottenberry, rottencherryberry - Freeform, set in like late 1800s
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-08
Updated: 2020-05-29
Packaged: 2021-03-02 02:01:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 11,060
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23537257
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TrasBen/pseuds/TrasBen
Summary: (Wild West AU)In a routine hold up of a saloon at a small town, bandits Blue and Razz are surprised to find a treasure more valuable than any amount of gold.Turns out their treasure's younger brother doesn't quite appreciate them effectively kidnapping his only family, though. Now they must make it to the west coast while on the run from not only their old lives and the law, but a pissed off Edge as well.
Relationships: Sans/Sans (Undertale)
Series: Skeleton Shipping [8]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1403878
Comments: 70
Kudos: 88





	1. Blue Drinks Milk and Takes a Hostage

**Author's Note:**

> quick note:
> 
> um. i know that there's a ton of versions of Swapfell Sans, but this is just going to be my interpretation of him. basically what most people would call razz - which is the name he goes by in this fic. okay! you're free to read :D

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> the title basically ;)

Blue and Razz arrive in town when the sun is still high in the sky. They’re a bit behind schedule - the two partners prefer to hit in the early morning, before the locals or sheriff is up and about.

It’s also a perfect time to catch saloons off guard.

Small backwater towns like this one don’t usually have banks, so bars are typically the next best location.

The two skeletons in question are a pair of shortish bandits. Despite their time on the run in the open west, they dress cleanly and nicely. Thick jeans lined with furs that protect their bones from chafing from their many hours horseback, durable snake skin boots that shine in the southern heat, and long sleeved button down cotton shirts. Hidden beneath their simple vests are holsters for pistols, two for each skeleton.

Their faces are hidden by a combination of the colorful bandannas they wear - a bright Cyan for Blue and a deep plum for Razz - and the wide brimmed stetson hats they don.

The ride into town on their horses slowly, easily.

It’s small, that’s for sure. It looks to be comprised of a few houses, some of which double as small shops, with a sheriff’s office at the far end of the grouping of buildings and a jailing building across from it. The biggest building by far is the saloon, which is connected to a smallish inn.

The landscape is the same as what Blue and Razz have seen on their journey through the west; flat land as far as the eye can see, soft green grass carpeting the ground, speckled with wild flowers. Paths are beaten into the ground, leaving a sandy and dusty trail that guides the bandits towards the most frequently visited local hangouts.

Harsh light from the sun beats down on the two skeletons. Trees and the shade they provide are few and far between the further west they go, offering the two bandits little to no protection from neither the sun nor the law.

This town seems to be lucky, though. It’s stationed right next to a wide river that looks to have a good supply of fish. After Blue and Razz finish with this job, they might just follow the river down a few miles and take a well-deserved bath.

That is if the law doesn’t ride their non-existent asses out too far.

Razz gives Blue a quick nod before pulling at the reins of his chestnut mount and pulls to the right so he can get a good look around the town while Blue scopes out the saloon. Blue tips his hat in response and kicks his horse’s sides to encourage her to trot lightly over to the large building with the words _Chillby’s_ spelled across out front.

The main road for town is relatively empty. It’s an exceptionally hot day, which could explain why.

There are only two monsters that Blue can see up and about, one bunny monster reading on a rocking chair out front on her porch and another older bear monster smoking outside of the saloon. 

He tips his head at Blue when the blue toned skeleton wanders near on his horse.

“Ain’t seen you before.” The bear rasps.

Blue hums as he hops off his horse and ties the reins to a post that has thoughtfully been put into the ground near the steps. He pulls the knot tight and tugs it for good measure before he turns back to the bear.

“JUST PASSING THROUGH.” He tells the other cheerfully. He doesn’t bother pulling down his bandanna, not wanting to lose his relative anonymity. Despite this, Blue manages to give a small half-truth to the monster.

“Oh, yeah?” The bear blows out a rather impressive smoke ring and coughs a little. “It’s pretty far west out here, you heading’ for the frontier?”

Blue shrugs. The bear can’t see his grin, but Blue maintains it to help with his little act. “I’M HEADING FOR THE GOLDEN HILLS OUT BY THE COAST.” He answers.

The old monster whistles low. “Good luck, kid.”

“THANK YOU!” With that, Blue pushes his way into the saloon. Immediately, a squeaky floorboard alerts the entire building to his presence.

It’s livelier than the main road by far. There are at least eight monsters sitting out and about. Most of them are seated around a long table, playing cards. There’s a large cloud of smoke surrounding them, but Blue can make out that it’s a pack of dog monsters. They all turn to face him at the disturbance.

By the door is a voluptuous and scantily clad bunny monster who winks at Blue and beacons him with a ‘come hither’ motion and her best bedroom eyes. The skeleton ignores her easily. He’s seen his fair share of sportin’ women in his travels. She only giggles as he passes

Blue’s target is the bar. There’s two other monsters seated there, already looking to have had a barrel of drink each, slumped over the counter. That’s good. The less resistance the better.

Behind it is a flame monster, tall and strong looking. His purple flames flicker as he eyes Blue. In a rather cliche move, he’s polishing a glass. Blue wonders if he’s got a shotgun under the counter, too.

“AFTERNOON, BARKEEP!” Blue greets. He takes a seat on the stool directly in front of where the monster is standing.

“It’s Chillby. The fuck do you want?” The flame crackles. His bright eyes are narrow and suspicious of the new-comer.

Blue drums his fingers along the counter top and hums, that same jaunty toon that’s been stuck in his head for the past week. _(Razz has already let it be known that he’s just about had it up to the ears he doesn’t have with Blue’s incessant crooning._ ) A secret, sly smile falls over Blue’s face.

“A DRINK WOULD BE FINE! YOU WOULDN’T HAPPEN TO HAVE ANY MILK?”

The tension _Chillby_ had been holding in his shoulders eases as he crackles in what must be a fire elemental’s version of laughter. “You skeletons and your fuckin’ milk.” He laughs.

Blue has no idea what Chillby’s talking about, but it puts him slightly on edge.

_They’d never been here before.They’d know._

So how was Chillby familiar with skeleton monsters? They were a rare breed, concentrated mostly out east near the cities in the north.

The elemental slams a clear glass filled with milk down in front of Blue. His voice turns stern as he says, “Don’t even fuckin’ think about opening up a tab. I have enough of that shit with Red.”

Blue has no idea who Red is, either, but he takes the milk and sips from it gratefully from under his bandanna. Strong bones!

“I’D NEVER.” Blue assures Chillby. He doesn’t do tabs. He doesn’t really do the whole _payment_ thing at all, actually. But the fire monster doesn’t know that. And he won’t until it’s too late.

“Yeah, sure.” Chillby replies. “What’s your deal? Lookin’ to move to the good old Middle-Of-Fuckin’-Nowhere?”

“JUST PASSING THROUGH.” Blue quotes himself from earlier with the bear. “I’M HEADING FURTHER OUT WEST TO THE HILLS.”

“Sounds like a waste of time, ain’t nobody but those fuckwits from up north getting any gold out there.” Chillby warns Blue. “The bastard’s got contractors and speculators out there choking the whole joint up. Ridiculous. As if they aren’t swimming in enough gold as it is.”

Blue only takes another long pull from his drink, tipping it back to hide his face. “I’M NOT IN IT FOR THE GOLD. LAND OUT THERE IS UP FOR GRABS, I’M LOOKING TO REINVENT MYSELF, IF YOU CATCH MY DRIFT.”

Something about what Blue said seemed to set off some sort of alarm in Chillby’s head. The tall monster leans up against the bar and leers down at Blue, once again suspicious.

“You got a name, stranger?” He asks lowly.

Blue’s ready for this, though. He’s long since shed his true name, ever since the law first got on his and Razz’s cases. The two of them had both taken up aliases to throw their pursuers off their trail.

“BLUEBERRY, BLUE FOR SHORT.”

“Hm.” Chillby grunts. He’s still giving Blue a rather mean look, distrustful. “You come here alone?”

“NO, MY PARTNER AND I TRAVEL TOGETHER.”

An out of character smirk spreads across Blue’s face underneath his bandanna. He’s not afraid to spill a little more information. Chillby will know all of this by the time he and Razz leave, anyways.

Besides. Watching the elemental’s face contort in confusion is worth it.

“And where are they?”

Blue hums. Chillby growls.

Inside his head, Blue counts down.

_5_

_4_

Blue’s left eye light flares with bright blue flame as he uses his gravity magic to pin everybody in the bar in their current position. Everybody but Chillby.

“What the hell?!” A gruff voice from the dogs’ table calls out.

Chillby turns to the dog’s table, then whips his flaming head back to Blue.

_3_

“What the fuck did you do - ?”

_2_

Blue only hums. Razz should be here in only a moment.

“Answer me, you piece of shit!” Chillby rages. 

_1_

A gunshot rings out right outside of the saloon.

Chillby loses his words as the doors squeak open once again. Blue doesn’t need to look. He already knows who it is.

“DON’T MOVE.” The rough voice of Razz rings out across the saloon. Blue hears the click of a bullet sliding into place and smells gunpowder - he’s probably got his weapon trained on Chillby. “HANDS UP.”

The elemental growls as he slowly raises his hands above his head. His flames are flickering wildly, angrily. 

Blue takes another long sip from his drink and stands. More squeaks sound on the floor as Razz stomps his way over to stand by Blue.

“Any Problems?” He murmurs.

“None.” Blue assures. He turns to Chillby and draws one of his own pistols. “NOW THEN. WE WANT IT.”

“ _What._ ” Chillby bites out aggressively. He looks fit to burst in anger, but knows that he’s in no position to do so. It’s two against one, and the two are armed.

“YOUR MONEY, WHAT ELSE.” Razz answers curtly. “WE WANT EVERYTHING YOU’VE GOT. YOU HAVE TWO MINUTES UNTIL I BLAST YOUR ASS TO SUNDAY.”

Chillby spits out his words like they’re poison. “What makes you think I’ll give you pieces of shit one fucking G?”

“FOR ONE, WE HAVE GUNS.” Razz tells Chillby wryly. “AND FOR SECOND, I HAVE A FEELING YOU VALUE YOUR PATHETIC LIFE.WHERE THE HELL IS YOUR SAFE?” He shakes his gun a little, still aimed at Chillby’s chest. Blue keeps his own gun trained in the same place.

“TIMES TICKING!” Blue points out cheerfully.

“I’d rather die than give rat bandits like you anything.” The elemental swears. Blue can tell that Razz is about to say something snarky and threatening when a creaking by the stairs catches their attention.

Blue whips his pistol around to face the intruder while Razz keeps his gun and gaze on Chillby.

It’s another elemental. A younger one, a girl. Her flames are bright pink. They flicker nervously around her frame.

“Dad?” She whimpers

“ _Fuku!”_ Chillby shouts. “Go upstairs.”

“NO, STAY.” Blue counters. Fuku gulps as she stares down the barrel of his pistol. “ARE YOU HIS DAUGHTER?”

Fuku nods unsteadily.

Chillby curses.

“WELL THEN.” Razz taunts. “WOULD YOU BE WILLING TO RISK HER FOR A FEW MEASLY GOLD?”

…

For a few moments, silence reigns.

… 

“... I can’t open it.” Chillby finally admits.

“WHAT?” Razz is not amused.

“The fucking safe! What else?!” He shouts, “The sheriff has the key stashed in his office! I couldn’t give you the gold if I fucking wanted to! Let her _go!”_

Blue can’t see Chillby’s face, he’s still got all his attention of Fuku, who’s now crying. Wisps of smoke rise from her flame face. Maybe he would have felt bad a few years ago, before all this bandit business started. Now, all he sees is a bargaining chip.

“NO.” Razz replies after a little. He thinks for a little while longer. “ _SHE_ IS GOING TO TAKE US TO THE SHERIFF’S BUILDING.” Fuku’s fiery eyes brighten in fear, “AND _YOU_ ARE GOING TO STAY HERE. IF YOU MAKE A SINGLE MOVE SHE’S DUST. GOT IT?”

“ _Bastard!”_ Chillby yells. But he relents. “Don’t hurt her.”

“WE WON’T HAVE TO IF YOU HOLD UP YOUR END!” Blue tells Chillby.

…

“Go with them.” Chillby tells his daughter reluctantly. “Be good, don’t try anything, okay?”

“B-But…” She stutters.

“ _Go!_ I can’t lose you, spitfire.” With that order, she slowly moves towards Blue. He waves his gun in her face when she gets close and grabs her roughly, holding her hands behind her back as he shoves the gun under her chin.

“Gentle!” Chillby growls.

“BE GLAD SHE ISN’T DEAD. DON’T FOLLOW US.” Razz orders. He holsters his gun and motions for Blue to follow him out. Blue keeps a tight hold on Fuku and follows Razz out, still facing the bar until they’re finally out of the building.

On the porch of the saloon is a pile of dust with a smoking cigar settled in the middle.

It’s taxing, but Blue maintains his hold on the patrons of Chillby’s with his magic even as they leave. He doesn’t let go until they’re halfway into town, sure by then that they won’t try anything.

“D-Don’t you need me to lead you?” Fuku asks nervously.

“NOT REALLY.” Blue responds politely. It’s a stark juxtaposition to the way he’s still holding her like a jailer does a murderer.

“I’VE ALREADY SCOPED OUT THIS PLACE.” Razz corroborates. “I KNOW IT LIKE THE BACK OF MY HAND, SO DON’T GET ANY FUNNY IDEAS.”

Fuku whimpers.

… 

As they approach the sheriff's building, Blue’s SOUL starts to beat more rapidly. He feels slightly dizzy.

Razz falters slightly in his steps and Blue wonders if he’s getting the same feeling.

_What is it?_

It can’t be nerves. The two have done this too many times to start getting nervous, now.

_Then what is this rushing feeling?_ A gentle blue blush coats Blue’s face as they stand in front of the building. A deep purple stains Razz’s cheekbones all the same.

They share a knowing look.

They’ve felt this feeling before. It was a long time ago. Back when they still had families and morals.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> for reference: chillby keeps his safe's key with the sheriff primarily to stop robberies. he could have given them the cash at the register but he wanted to buy time. didn't exactly work out like he wanted, though. :)
> 
> leave a comment if you'd like! :D


	2. Razz Doesn't Find a Key and is Called Short

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> blue and razz's mission turns into quite the spectacular failure.

Razz isn’t one to feel comfortable without knowing absolutely anything and everything he deems to be necessary, which, frankly, is a whole lot. He’s an obsessive monster, careful, observant. Blue wishes he could be half as meticulous as his partner, but he’s more suited for the hard, physical parts of their job.

He holds hostages, smashes counters, shoots guns. Razz has nothing against doing any of this, but he’s the brain behind the operation. 

Blue _also_ wishes Razz had been as smart as he is now back when they still lived in that small town back on the east coast. Then maybe neither of them would be shooting guns in the first place.

Wishing won’t change the past, though. Razz knows this.

He turns to the fire elemental still held in Blue’s grip and snarls to hide the sudden fluster that’s overcome the two of them.

“WHO EXACTLY IS YOUR SHERIFF?”

Fuku stutters for a bit before she puts together a string of words, “H...He’s a skeleton. T-Tall, r-real mean.”

Blue and Razz share a meaningful look. 

“WELL, HE CAN’T BE ALL THAT BAD!” Blue interjects semi-cheerfully. “I’LL THINK HIM PLENTY KIND IF HE COOPERATES WITH US NICELY!”

Razz only grunts and kicks in the door with his boot. It nearly takes the darn thing of its hinges.

Well. There goes any semblance of subtlety they were trying to upkeep. Or maybe Razz figured it was better this way, to throw the sheriff off his rhythm or something else equally ridiculous the purple toned skeleton could come up with.

Their bold entrance into the small, shack-like office shocks whoever was sitting inside behind the polished wooden desk to fall out of their seat. Blue stands by the door with his gun still pointed at Fuku’s head while Razz walks in, boots clicking against the surprisingly clean floor. There's only a desk, a chair and a bookcase and a large safe in the room. Quite clean compared to some other sheriff offices Blue has seen.

Razz and Blue share another look when the fallen monster curses, but beneath their bandannas this time around, there are twin grins of amusement. Blue hopes that his own bandanna is covering the sudden flush over his face better than Razz’s, but it’s not likely.

“holy _shit_ boss!” A low, gruff voice whines. “goddamn, do ya gotta do that every fuckin’ time or is today just special?” There’s a loud yawn from the monster under the desk, almost comical in its blissful ignorance.

“HANDS IN THE AIR.” Razz commands, a hint of humor in his voice.

“... boss?”

“FIVE, FOUR…” Razz drones on. He’s quick, efficient still despite their connection to the skeleton.

Slowly, two small, shaky hands raise themselves up over the desk.

Blue raises his brow bones. Those didn’t look like the hands of the ‘Tall skeleton sheriff’ Fuku had described.

“YOU CAN STAND UP!” Blue encourages. Without hiding his hands, the skeleton stands to his full height, just shorter than Razz. It must please the sharp-toothed bandit, because Blue can see the grin on his face spread just a little wider.

His partner _is_ quite sensitive about his height.

The unknown skeleton has sharp teeth like Razz, but one of his is replaced with a golden fake. There’s a long crack winding up from his left eye socket to the back of his skull. His bones are flushed a pretty red. 

Blue is suddenly reminded of the bag full of cherries his father had once bought from a market. They were fancy, but not as rare as back when there weren’t any railroads. They were also tasty.

“WHAT DO YOU THINK?” Blue asks Razz.

“CUTE, BUT NOT THE SHERIFF.” Razz replies easily. Good, so they’re on the same page. It looks like he and his partner might be getting more than just a fat check out of his whole ordeal. Certainly makes it easier to take a cute little cherry like this with you when he’s not the sheriff of the town you’re robbing.

“WELL,” Blue turns to the little skeleton who’s sweating and shaking. He can just make out the glow of the red toned skeleton’s SOUL underneath his thin button-up. _So he feels it, too_. “ON WITH IT THEN, RAZZ, REMOVE HIS WEAPON PLEASE!” Blue nods to where the smaller skeleton's gun rests in its holster on his hip.

The tiny skeleton laughs.

Razz’s grip on his gun tightens briefly before he gets control of himself. That grin from earlier flips around to a terse frown. He…. _doesn’t_ like to be laughed at. 

Even his ego can admit that the laugh was more nervous than anything, though. The tiny skeleton stiffens as Razz stomps over and takes the little cherry’s gun, slipping it into the empty space in his own holster.

“don’t touch me!” The red toned skeleton barks when Razz sticks around in his personal space for a little too long.

“YOU’RE GOING TO NEED TO LEARN BETTER MANNERS THAN THAT, PET.” Razz says wryly. “FOR NOW, THOUGH, WHY DON’T YOU HELP ME FIND SOMETHING?”

The look on the red skeleton’s face conveys his thoughts on _helping_ Razz perfectly.

“what’re ya lookin’ fer?” He asks sarcastically.

“A KEY. WE WERE TOLD THE SHERIFF KEPT IT IN HIS OFFICE… BUT YOU AREN’T THE SHERIFF, ARE YOU?”

The shorter skeleton looks around to where Blue is holding Fuku hostage. An almost horrified sort of realization comes over his face as he grits his sharp teeth. “fuck you.” He spits.

“NOT QUITE YET, UNFORTUNATELY.” Blue tells him, “BUT MAYBE AFTER YOU HELP US FIND WHAT WE NEED? WE WENT THROUGH SUCH A TROUBLE TO DO ALL OF THIS, AFTER ALL!”

The little cherry sputters in shock and protest, “sh-shut it! i ain’t givin’ you the key! m-my bro’s gonna come back and he’s gonna… gonna…”

“GONNA WHAT?” Razz asks, shaking his gun for emphasis, “WHERE IS HE? I RODE ALL AROUND TOWN AND DIDN’T SEE A SINGLE MEMBER OF LAW ENFORCEMENT, AND NOW WE’RE ALL ALONE WITH A LITTLE PET LIKE YOURSELF. SO WHAT WILL YOU DO? HOPE FOR YOUR PRECIOUS SHERIFF TO COME SAVE YOU BEFORE THE BIG BAD BANDITS GET YOU FIRST?”

“you ain’t _big_ or _bad._ ”

Blue whistles in shock. Wrong thing to say.

Razz scowls beneath his bandanna and shoves his gun into his waistband. The small skeleton only watches with mild fear and confusion, right before Razz uses his newly freed hand to catch both of his wrists in one hand, the other going to pull the smaller closer by the collar of his shirt.

“YOU’RE A WORSE BRAT THAN I THOUGHT.” He tells the other, keeping his wrists in hand while he reaches down with the other to unbuckle his pants.

Blue’s face flushes his namesake as he glances down at his hostage, who’s also getting an eyeful of the proceedings.

Razz always has a plan, is as always calm and collected as possible, but this monster might have just pushed him into a different state of mind.

“RAZZ - “ Blue tries, but Razz only shushes him. He huffs and tries again. “ _RAZZ,_ ARE YOU SURE THIS IS THE RIGHT TIME AND PLACE?”

Razz turns back to Blue briefly only so he can see his partner roll his eye lights. “LET THE GIRL GO, WE HAVE A BETTER HOSTAGE RIGHT HERE.”

“h-hey!”

Blue grumbles slightly as he releases Fuku, allowing her to stumble away. “It’s Just I’m Afraid Of What You’re Doing To The Hostage…” He sighs. Turning to Fuku, the blue toned skeleton gives her a hard look, “TELL YOUR FATHER WE’VE APPREHENDED THE LAW ENFORCEMENT AND WILL BE THERE SOON.”

She nods and books it down the road. Blue shuts the door behind her and walks over to where Razz has slipped the tiny skeleton’s belt from its loops and is using it to tie his wrists together in front of him.

“SIT THERE AND BE GLAD I’M NOT GAGGING YOU FOR YOUR INSOLENCE.” Razz tells the little cherry, “I UNFORTUNATELY NEED YOUR SMARTASS MOUTH TO TELL ME WHERE THE KEY IS.”

“this smartass mouth is zipped shut, asshole!”

Razz glowers.

Blue almost laughs. He’s a little stressed, not knowing where the sheriff is, having spent so long in this town already, and having just let go of their previous hostage, but it _is_ funny to see his partner get all riled up at their little captive’s back talk.

Even the ‘hostage’ is all flushed red and growly. It’s cute.

“NOW NOW, IGNORE MY PARTNER’S RUDENESS. I’M BLUE, THIS IS RAZZ. WHO ARE YOU?” Blue saunters up, putting his own gun away. He’s used to playing the role of good cop in situations like these, albeit Razz never usually lets himself get so worked up.

“not talkin’.” The red toned skeleton pouts.

“BUT WHY, WHEN YOU WERE SO WILLING EARLIER?” Razz points out grumpily. Poor skeleton, his ego is bruised.

“ya didn’t have me all tied up earlier, idiot.”

“UNFORTUNATELY THAT’S NECESSARY. HOPEFULLY YOU’LL WILLINGLY COME WITH US AFTER THIS LITTLE ORDEAL BLOWS OVER AND WE WON’T NEED TO RESTRAIN YOU.”

Their captive’s eye sockets widen as his eye lights shrink. “like hell i’m comin’ with ya! are you two fuckin’ nuts?!”

Blue and Razz look at each other again, silently passing the same feeling of confusion. Blue was sure that the smaller skeleton had felt it… their connection. Their SOULs were practically begging to be reunited with their fate-intended mate.

“ - “ Razz opens his mouth to speak up again, 

**_B A N G_ **

… but they’re interrupted by the door being kicked open. Their captive jumps again, Blue unholsters his gun quickly and whips around. _Damnit_ , did Chillby decide to come after them now that they didn’t have his daughter?!

Standing at the door isn’t a fire elemental, though.

It’s a skeleton monster. Looking _quite_ tall and mean. 

He’s lanky, like Blue’s brother and Razz’s brother are, with serrated teeth and narrow eye sockets that are burning with red. He has on typical sheriff’s wear, with a little golden star pinned to his vest, all cheesy like.

“RED!” He shouts, not having noticed the extra skeletons in his office, “IF YOU’RE SLEEPING AGAIN, SO HELP ME - !” He seems to pause as he notices everyone in the room.

The tall skeleton’s back straightens as he reaches for his own pistol.

“I WOULDN’T IF I WERE YOU!” Blue informs him cheerfully.

The sheriff’s hands are still in their place as his eye lights flick between their hostage and the bandit in front of him.

“bro - b-boss!” The little skeleton still held by Razz exclaims. Blue can hear him wriggling around even more, but now is not the time to take a peak. He has to remain focused, like he’d been earlier in Chilby’s. Stars, Blue knew this was going to be messy as soon as that little skeleton opened his mouth.

“UNHAND MY BROTHER.” The sheriff says darkly.

“NOT A CHANCE.” Razz spits. He probably realizes that he made a mistake by now, and is regretting it. There’s a whimper from their captive, a pained sound that ignites Blue’s magic - _what is Razz doing - ?!_

The two don’t have a hope of robbing this town, not as they are. Chillby could come around any minute, not to mention the irate sheriff already in front of them. 

_Damn._ If he looked at them for long enough to give a description, their whereabouts could be passed on and then their past would catch up far faster then either would like. They need to get out, as soon as they can.

Blue is definitely having a stern talking-to with Razz after this on how to treat their new mate, as well as about getting distracted in the middle of a job.

“WE’RE ON OUR WAY OUT, NO HARM DONE.” Blue tells the sheriff. It’s time to swallow his pride and attempt to make an exit. Hopefully the tall skeleton doesn’t know about them taking Fuku as hostage or attempting to rob the local pub and will allow them to leave as long as they promise not to cause any more trouble here.

“PUT YOUR GUN DOWN AND WE’LL TALK.” The taller growls.

Blue slowly complies, holstering his gun again and putting his hands up, “WE JUST WANT TO LEAVE, PROMISE.” For a second, Blue thinks that the sheriff will let him by, the taller seems to consider his declaration of peace.

… For all of two seconds until he glances back at his brother.

“LET GO OF MY BROTHER.” He replies. “YOU’RE UNDER ARREST ON THE AUTHORITY OF THE GREAT AND TERRIBLE EDGE.”

“OVER MY COLD DUST.” Razz growls loudly in exasperation. Blue can hear his partner’s gun clicking as he holds it up.”OUT OF THE WAY, OR HE GETS IT.” Razz threatens.

A squeak comes from the small skeleton in Razz’s hold.

Blue knows it’s a bluff, and so does Razz. They’d never hurt someone as precious as their SOULmate. But the sheriff, Edge, doesn’t know that.

Edge isn’t quite so willing to just let his brother get threatened, though, apparently. Because he doesn’t reach for his gun. No, instead, he summons up about two dozen sharpened red bones up behind him and points them at Blue.

Razz curses loudly. He’s got their captive as a ‘shield’, but Blue has nothing to save him from Edge’s wrath.

With only a split second to think, Blue lifts one hand up in the air, cyan flames spilling from his left eye socket as he summons his ‘Special Attack’.

A large skull of a hound floats above his head.

Edge stills. Blue doesn’t know if he’s familiar with the Gaster Blaster, but he seems to recognize that it’s nothing to be messed with at least.

“SORRY,” Blue says breathlessly before he turns the blaster towards the wall to the left of them and blasts a hole clean through the wood. Razz takes the hint and books it out of the hole, headed for his horse.

Blue knows he doesn’t have nearly enough time or luck to get his own steed back from in front of Chilby’s, so he quickly follows his partner and hostage, leaving Edge standing in place, in shock over the new hole in his office.

Razz throws their hostage up on the back of the horse and climbs up on after. He pulls Blue up when he reaches the horse. Blue settles himself behind Razz and grabs their captive from where he’s tossed on, making sure the small skeleton doesn’t fall as his partner kicks it into high gear and they tear up dust on their way out of town.

_What a mess_...

  
==

Edge watches as the two bandits make their way out of town on one horse. He watches the place where they'd finally gotten far enough to disappear for a long time. He hates himself for not moving, for being weak enough to let them take his only family.

How could he let them do this? How could he fail his brother like this? His weak, sleepy brother?

Edge's hands clench into fists besides him.

Never mind that. He can't think like that right now, can't give into the despair that's creeping into his rib cage. The fear that he might never see his brother again, that those bandits might make good on their promise and he'll lose his only brother. He.... He needs to find Red.

That's right.

He'll find Red and he'll make those bastard bandits pay for their transgression, for what they did to Red.

... Edge must have sat there for at least half an hour before a small, weak monster hesitantly approaches Edge in his destroyed office.

"S-Sheriff, sir?" He asks. It's a bunny monster, short, dressed sloppily. He reeks of burgers and booze, probably just came over from Chillby's.

"WHAT?" Edge hisses.

"Some bandits c-came through earlier... but, uh, we ain't seen um for almost an hour... are they gone?"

The sheriff turns a sharp eye socket on the monster. "WHAT?!" They'd been here for at least an hour?! "WHY THE HELL WASN'T I INFORMED WE HAD BANDITS?!" He barks.

The bunny cowers, "They took Chillby's girl as a hostage... they returned her though... she said they got you..."

Edge sighs. "NOT ME. MY BROTHER."

"... Oh..."

_Oh_ indeed. Edge will get those bandits. Not only for taking his brother, but for messing with _his_ town. He wasn't sheriff for no reason.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this chapter was written REALLY quickly, so i might go back and add or take away some things later when i'm feeling it. in other news, edge is supremely angry that his lazy brother just got kidnapped.
> 
> .... meanwhile, blue and razz still don't know the name of their new little soulmate.
> 
> leave a comment if you'd like! :D


	3. Red Has Some Water and Gets Sans-Wiched

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> red is trying to give his captors a hard time, but they're intent on giving him a .... harder.... time ;)

_ Red had only wanted to take a nap! _

He’d done it at least a hundred times before - waited until Edge was out of the office, patrolling town boarders on 'patrol’ to settle into the uncomfortable wooden seat behind his desk and take a short snooze.

Red doesn’t usually wake up in time to save him from Edge’s wrath, but the boss would never do more than scold him, or, if the taller skeleton was in a particularly testy mood, make Red sweep the cells at the jail house .

Edge had always warned Red that he needed to be constantly vigilant while on the job… that bandits or other miscreants could infiltrate the town at any moment. And Red had called his little brother paranoid. Told him that there's no way any bandit would bother to stop by let alone rob their dreary midwestern town.

They’re miles off from the nearest railroad, for star’s sake! The only saving grace of the town is that it’s by a river!

_ But here he is _ . Kidnapped. By bandits. Red feels like an idiot.

Strapped like cargo to the back of a horse, behind the two skeletons who’d  _ kidnapped _ him. They’re talking amongst themselves in hushed murmurs, too soft for Red to hear. It’s not like Red’s able to focus particularly well, either, considering that he’s  _ strapped to the back of a horse. _

… Red has never liked horses.

He remembers, back when he was really young, his dad trying to put him on the back of one. He’d whined and cried until his dad had taken him down and placed him back on the ground, then had promptly run back into their little sod house. Red had never really liked that house either, but it was better than the risk of getting thrown off an animal five times his size.

Red’s hardly any taller now, but horses haven’t gotten any smaller. In fact, the bandits’ horse seems to be  _ larger _ than the average steed. 

He wiggles around uncomfortably, trying to get a more stable positioning. The tiny skeleton tries to squeeze his eye sockets shut as well as he can in hopes to block out his surroundings. If he’s successful, he can try to forget that he’s on a horse right now. And that he’s been kidnapped. 

The whole situation is making him feel a little nauseous, but that might just be the smell of the horse.

The clopping of hooves against the soft dirt of a well-worn road and the distant sounds of the nearby river ruin whatever mental escape he’s trying to achieve though. The ride is bumpy and harsh, the bandits are pushing the horse to its limits to get away. It’s already been around an hour, if Red’s sense of time isn’t skewed. They should be miles away from town, way further out than Edge usually patrols.

The thought causes a sharp pang of sadness and panic to run through Red.

If they go too far, if they take Red with them, will Edge be able to follow? Will he be able to find Red and take him back? Or will Red be stuck with two criminals until he fulfills whatever purpose they took him for and they discard him?

The nicer bandit - Blue, Red thinks his name is - says something to the shorter, meaner skeleton that causes him to slowly pull the horse to a stop. Red sighs in relief as the sick feeling that had been building up where his stomach would have been subsides a little.

“WE SHOULD BE ABOUT FAR ENOUGH OUT TO TAKE A REST.” Blue says. The other grunts in response. He lets Blue hop down from the horse first before getting down.

Red waits for them to acknowledge him, but the mean bandit only leads the horse by its reins to a small tree nearby - they’ve stopped at a shady, hidden spot near the river, he finds - and ties the reins around a branch before he wanders back over to Blue.

Red’s… a little indignant.

How dare those fuckfaces kidnap him then  _ ignore  _ him?!

Stars... If Red had eaten breakfast this morning and didn’t feel so sick right now, he’d blast them to dust!

But he didn’t eat breakfast. He currently doesn’t have the magical reserves to take on two capable monsters on his own. Not to mention that he has no idea where he is. Red could try to follow the river back to town if he somehow manages to escape, but there’s no guarantee he won’t starve or get attacked by an animal before he gets home.

He’s infuriatingly dependent on the bastard bandits right now.

“hey!” Red calls out. His voice is a little raspy due to the fact that he kept hollering out at them to let him go for the first half hour of the journey. He’s thirsty and his voice sounds like he just swallowed someone’s boot spur.

But the bandits still don’t turn to look at him. Red growls despite the pain, “yo, short stack and blue balls! untie me!” 

His attention is mostly focused on Blue, the one who’d (admittedly rather impressively) tied him down while the horse was still trotting after their quick escape. Plus, he wasn’t so sure Mr. Meany Pants would take much mercy considering his earlier actions.

The insults seem to catch the both the bandits’ attention, though. Blue looks back with a blank, unimpressed face and a raised brow ridge while the mean one’s skull is flushed a deep plum, his expression even angrier than when Red had called him short earlier.

“WHO THE FUCK ARE YOU CALLING SHORT STACK, WHELP?” The mean one snarls. Red belatedly realizes that he’s not really in the position to be antagonizing his captors, especially since he’s tied up and the mean bandit is stomping over, looking ready to punch Red right in the mug.

He yelps as the purple toned monster gets closer, but is relieved to see Blue stopping his partner’s approach by putting a gloved hand on his shoulder.

“WHY DON’T YOU GET US SOME WATER, RAZZ. I’LL TALK TO HIM.” He offers. Red would be glad for it if it weren’t for the blatant intimidating look the taller skeleton was leveling at him. 

Red feels a small shiver go down his spine… it only now occurs to him that the friendly ‘nice guy’ act might have been just that. A performance.

Razz shrugs off Blue’s hand from his body and huffs angrily. “IF HE DOESN’T SHAPE UP SOON, I’M GOING TO TEACH HIM A LESSON.” He leaves for the river after grabbing up a canteen.

When Blue and Red are left alone, Blue’s blank look shifts to another grin. But the look in his eye lights - the hard look that had Red second-guessing his intentions - is still there. Red would be shaking in his boots if his feet were on the ground.

Blue’s eye sockets narrow at Red as he draws near. “NOW NOW, THAT WASN’T A VERY NICE THING TO SAY, NOW WAS IT?”   
  


Red’s face contorts angrily. So the fucker’s just going to keep up his little act? Going to pretend that he’s not just as spiteful as his shorter partner?

“fuck off, yer th’ one who started it by kidnappin’ me.” He grumbles shakily. His own spite is the only thing keeping him from wiring his own mouth shut and looking down. Red can’t show weakness; if any of Edge’s words had stuck with Red, it was that he could never willingly give an advantage to his enemy.

Blue’s calm mask breaks when his soft grin turns downwards at the edges. It’s an unnatural look for the happy-looking skeleton.

“I Suppose That’s True... “ Blue sighs and looks off to the side as if Red’s a rebelling child and not someone he  _ kidnapped _ . “You Have A Right To Be Upset With Razz And I…” The bandit turns his gaze back to Red, and the small skeleton can see that his eye lights have disappeared, leaving behind two dark pits.

“But You **_Will_** Respect Us.” He says darkly.

Red gapes like a fish out of water, but some sort of switch in the bandit is flipped, and Blue’s face returns to its calm mask, his eye lights shining in his skull like they’d never left. The contrast is so stark that Red wonders if he imagined that little lapse.

“OKAY THEN! GOOD TALK, PARTNER! I NEVER CAUGHT YOUR NAME BY THE WAY…?”

The small skeleton struggles to wrap his mind around what just happened.

“r-red.” He stutters. What the hell does it matter if they know his name? It’s clear to him now that he’s at their mercy for the time being.

_ That doesn’t mean that he’s going to make it easy for the criminals, though. _

“RED! OH, I LIKE THAT NAME.” Blue hums. Red flinches as the bandit comes closer, but relaxes upon realizing that he’s only untying the restraints, the small skeleton remains still and compliant.

Gently, Blue helps Red down. He tries not to shiver at the feeling of those gloved hands on him. It tingles in a way that Red’s never felt when he touches other monsters and his rib cage aches suddenly. It feels like there’s a rope pulling him towards Blue.

It’s enough to have Red unwittingly lurch towards the bandit, who catches him easily with a small laugh. “MAYBE LATER ~” He says teasingly, “WE’RE STILL IN A BIT OF A PICKLE RIGHT NOW WITH YOUR BROTHER POSSIBLY ON OUR TAIL.”

The reminder of his brother is enough to wash away Red’s confusion and leave him with that same cold fear from before.

Would Edge really come after them? Would he be able to find them?

“RAZZ SHOULD HAVE SOME WATER FOR US BY NOW, LET’S VISIT HIM.” Blue doesn’t seem concerned with Red’s lack of response, simply leading the smaller monster towards the river, where Razz is squatted down, examining a shiny rock. Beside him on the ground is the canteen, capped and presumably full of river water.

“HOWDY, HANDSOME. GOT SOME WATER FOR US?” At Blue’s greeting, Razz startles, almost losing his balance.The purple toned skeleton quickly regains his composure, though, and stands up swiftly. He pockets the rock and grabs up the canteen.

Razz clears his throat with a small flush as he rolls his eye lights back in his skull, “... DO YOU HAVE TO USE THOSE RIDICULOUS PET NAMES?”

Blue only grins at his partner as he accepts the canteen that Razz hands over easily.

Red looks between the two, realization dawning over him.

_ Oh. _

The two aren’t just partners in crime, but in life as well. He feels a little embarrassed to have not caught on sooner. And to find out that he’s now caught in the middle of two lovers as a hostage.

Oh joy.

Blue hands off the canteen to Red after taking a quick sip, chirping out a happy ‘THANK YOU!’ to Razz.

Red is… reluctant to put his mouth on the canteen right after Blue had done so, but neither Razz nor Blue seems to think it odd, so he drinks greedily. When the small skeleton finally gasps for air after having emptied what was left in the bottle, both bandits are looking at him.

Red feels his skull burst out into a bright blush.

_ what th’ hell?! _

Razz is barely containing a look of disapproval while Blue’s grin is the same as ever.

“w-what are ya lookin’ at, freaks?!” Red asks defensively. He holds the canteen to his rib cage as he shields his body from view out of embarrassment. Hoping that they would stop looking with those weird expressions.

“YOUR MANNERS ARE DEPLORABLE.” Razz says evenly. Blue gets a small laugh out of his partner’s words, but is quick to reassure his small hostage.

“I, FOR ONE, THINK IT’S RATHER CUTE!”

Red has to fight not to look down at his feet.

_ Why is Blue saying these things? He has a partner. Is he just trying to rile Red up? Make him drop his guard? _

_ hmph _ , Red thinks to himself,  _ not happenin’ _

“YOU AND I’S THOUGHTS ON ‘CUTE’ ARE VERY DIFFERENT, THEN.” Razz remarks dryly. “I PREFER MY PETS TO USE FAR LESS CRASS LANGUAGE.”

Blue nods along. Red only watches in mild disbelief as they converse about him  _ right in front of him. _

“I DO AGREE THAT RED COULD USE LESS VULGAR LANGUAGE. THEN AGAIN, YOU DON’T REALLY HAVE ROOM TO SPEAK ON THAT MATTER, DO YOU, RAZZ?” Blue shoots his partner a sly smile.

Razz snorts. “FUCK OFF.”

“... weirdos.” Red huffs under his breath.

It’s not quiet enough to escape the attention of his captors, however. Razz’ expression sours once again as he addresses Red.

“CUT THE ATTITUDE, PET…” The sour expression melts away to something far worse. It’s the same sort of grin that Blue wears all the time, Red notes with horror. “... IN FACT, I’M TIRED OF THE NAMES YOU KEEP CALLING ME. I THINK ‘SIR’ FITS ME MUCH BETTER, DON’T YOU?”

The final straw is when Razz honest to stars  _ winks _ at Red.

“th’ hell?!” Red shrieks. He tries to back up, but at some point, Blue had gotten up behind Red. The small skeleton bumps into the larger bandit and freezes when he feels hands come up to hold his shoulders. Razz advances while he’s stuck in place.

“LANGUAGE, PET.” Blue purrs. Red can’t believe this is happening. “I BELIEVE I INFORMED YOU ABOUT RESPECTING RAZZ AND I EARLIER?”

His shoulders tingle again in the places where Blue's hand are on him. It has his exhausted magic buzzing around his bones. His SOUL feels like it’s about to lurch out of his rib cage towards Razz.

Razz stops right in front of Red, only inches away. A single gloved phalanx traces Red’s jaw as the small skeleton sweats.

“GO ON.” Razz tells Red smugly. “SAY IT.”

“n-no.” Red replies stubbornly.

From behind Red, Blue tsks. “IT’S NOT THAT DIFFICULT. THINGS WILL BE MUCH EASIER FOR YOU IF YOU’RE… GOOD.”

The longer Red is held like this, spine pressed flush against Blue’s rib cage with Razz at his front, the harder it is to think. It feels like there’s a static slowly overtaking his thought. He has to constantly remind himself not to sink into Blue’s hold or to give into Razz’ touch on his jaw.

… Red can’t keep it up. He’s going to crack if they keep holding him like this, so he has to. He doesn’t want to, but he… has to.

“fine.” He says in a clipped tone.

“FINE…?” Razz implores.

“fine…. sir.”

The purple toned bandit’s grin widens exponentially. “THERE, WAS THAT SO HARD?”

“YOU DID VERY WELL!” Blue compliments.

Red feels like his skull is going to explore in embarrassment. “f-fuck you…”

Razz clicks his tongue and looks over Red’s shoulder at Blue. “LATER.” He says.

Blue nods behind Red and the small skeleton can just  _ tell _ by his voice that he’s wearing the same cheshire grin as his partner. “LATER!”

What is  _ wrong _ with these bandits?! When Blue finally loosens his grip, Red walks briskly over to a shady spot under a tree and sits. He puts his skull in his hands to hide his face and internally screams.

Red needs to get out of here as soon as possible. He may not know where he is, but Red could try to call for help if they got near enough to any settlements.

… Or… He could try to escape while they’re sleeping. Take the horse, ride down by the river east until he got back to the town. Right now, they're only a little over an hour’s way out. He could get back.

He just has to remember where they are. How to get back.

Red… doesn’t want to know what ‘later’ means.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> oml hahaha... i underestimated how fun this ship would be to write. i frickin' love razz getting all upset over red's disobedience and then blue just being like 'let me handle this' and red being like '????'
> 
> can you tell that red doesn't comprehend what's happening? our boys are going to have a wonderful time teaching him. >:)
> 
> _____  
> wild west au is just so good, leave a cheeky kudo if you agree ;))
> 
> anyways, leave a comment if you'd like or want to chat!


	4. Blue Makes a Fire and Is Actually Nice to His Soulmate

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> a lesson in fire safety. do it for smokey the bear, kids.

While Blue and Razz work on setting up a little camp for the night, Red sits by that same tree he’d retreated to after the bandits had cornered him. Blue did feel a little bad for teasing so much, especially after he saw the way Red slunk off to sulk. Their little captive seemed to figure out that he wasn’t getting anywhere worthwhile by running.

  
It had just been so much _fun_ to tease Red, though. The little skeleton made it so easy! He flustered and flushed at just all the right times - Blue did note that Red seemed to be just a little too naive for a fully grown monster, but that was all part of the game, wasn’t it?

  
At least, that’s what Razz had reassured him with, but Blue figures they could stand to talk with their SOULmate a bit more before they try to jump into anything too deep. There was so much they didn’t know about him, after all!

  
Blue and Razz had grown up in the same town off the east coast, down south. They’d known each other since before they could walk and spent just about every moment of their childhood practically joined by the hip. Finding one’s SOULmate so young was rare, but their families were delighted to find that they shared such a connection.

  
Secretly, Blue had always felt that there was more out there for him and Razz. He had thought when he’d gotten a little older that maybe it’s because while all the other children spoke dreamily of what future partner they might have, he already had Razz. It seemed bizarre to think that their adventure was so short…

  
And now he knows that all those years, it was Red that he and Razz were missing. When he first felt that pull and saw Red with his hands in the air, Blue realized that he didn’t want to let their little treasure slip through his gloved phalanges so quickly! Razz felt the pull, too, the desire to keep Red with them.

  
He wouldn’t be acting like he was otherwise. Blue can tell how Razz is mentally and physically restraining himself from describing just how thoroughly theirs the little monster is now.

  
Blue’s holding himself back, too. He just wants to hug Red into his rib cage and exclaim how happy he is to have finally found him! How happy both he and Razz are, even if the latter is acting like a sourpuss because of Red’s smart mouth!

  
Red’s not so touchy-feely, though, apparently, and the camp needs to be set up before nightfall so he and Razz can start switching off watchout-duties.

  
They're still too close to that town for Blue’s comfort. If someone - namely Red’s brother - really wanted to ride out and find them, they wouldn’t have to look farther than an hour’s way west following the river.

  
As the sun moves across the sky, steadily getting lower, Blue finds that his bones begin to ache. Ugh - so long of writing with Razz crammed into one saddle did a number on his tailbone, not to mention that they’d just lost half their inventory with Blue’s horseback at Chillby’s…

  
But working with his hands is a fairly mindless task, and it isn’t long before a rudimentary alarm-system is set up with some empty cans and wire. Razz points out a good tree to set up watch from and offers to take the first shift. Blue agrees because he sorely needs the break.

  
While Razz takes stock of what food they have left _(Good thing he insisted on carting most of it on his horse!)_ , Blue starts to gather firewood and kindling. It’ll have to be a small fire to avoid anyone stuffing their snout where it doesn’t belong, but it’ll also be necessary for the food and for warmth as the night progresses. Skeletons luckily aren’t so affected by temperature, but depending how far north you are, nights can be almost unbearable without a source of warmth.

  
When the sun has only a few minutes left on the horizon, Blue checks up on Red again. He’s still huddled into himself, back to the same tree he’s been sulking around all afternoon.

  
“LOOKS LIKE IT’S JUST ME AND YOU WHILE RAZZ KEEPS WATCH, PARTNER!” Blue tells him cheerily.

  
Red huffs and looks away, bringing in his knees to his rib cage and setting his chin on them. It’s a defensive position if Blue ever saw one, but he was “mean” to Red this afternoon, so he’ll let it slide. He goes around finding a suitable area without green grass to set up shop - and clears the leaves and sticks away from a radius of ten feet to get a small area for a fire set up.

  
His tiny captive doesn’t say anything, only watches with slight interest.

  
While he works, Blue talks.

  
“SO, DO YOU KNOW HOW TO MAKE A FIRE?” He asks casually. When the area is clear, Blue picks a spot only a few feet away from red to pick up a stray stone and dig up a small pit, careful that it’s deep enough for safety.

  
Blue doesn’t expect Red to answer, but it’s a pleasant surprise when he does.

  
“n-no.” Red says cautiously. He’s unabashedly staring at Blue now - or more accurately, at Blue’s hands as he smooths out the area around his little pit. He’s quiet for a minute after. Blue assumes that’s all he’s going to get out of the red toned skeleton, but Red surprises him yet again. “my bro’s good at that sort of thing. survivin’, y’know.”

  
“THAT’S FAIR,” Blue chuckles. “I DIDN’T KNOW HOW TO START A FIRE, BEFORE I HAD TO COOK MY OWN FOOD IN THE MIDDLE OF NOWHERE WITH NOTHING BUT SOME KINDLING AND A LIGHTER. WOULD YOU LIKE TO HELP?”

  
Red’s eye lights blip up to Blue’s face before they dart away again. “s-sure… might as well… it’ll be fuckin’ cold without one…” He concedes.

  
“CAN YOU GET ME SOME STONES, THEN? ENOUGH TO MAKE A RING AROUND THE PIT, PLEASE.” Red reacts positively to Blue’s polite tone, finally uncurling himself and stretching his legs before looking around. But Blue can’t leave it at just that - he’s too much of a hopeless romantic.

  
Now is his chance to learn more about Red, to prove that he’s more than a bandit who takes what he wants. The thought lights up in his skull like that one fancy light-up sign he’d seen on a storefront further back east. Blue had marveled at how the world progressed, even when he and Razz were on the run. Especially now, it seems. What with railroads popping up, trains traveling all over and fancy new guns…

  
But that’s besides the point.

  
“WHERE DID YOUR BROTHER LEARN TO MAKE A FIRE?” Blue asks genially.

  
Red pauses where he is for a moment. Blue feels like he made a mistake, watching the other monster look at the ground as if he’s trying to decide if he should tell or not, if he wants to tell or not at all. If he wants to talk to Blue anymore than is necessary…

  
It causes a small pang of regret to run through Blue’s SOUL. Perhaps he had teased too much earlier… maybe the obvious discomfort had been more genuine than he’d thought and Blue had taken it too far.

  
“we didn’ have a stove when i was growing up,” Red admits gruffly. It snaps Blue out of his spirling thoughts and gives his mind something new to chew on. “more like - a fire pit with a spit and some pots, y’know? i tried to learn but i was never good at it.” The red toned skeleton shrugs, “edge likes cookin’ more than me anyways.”

  
“WHAT KIND OF HOUSE DOESN’T HAVE A STOVE!?” Blue inquires, baffled. He doesn’t even register how horribly insensitive he sounds until Red breaks out into loud, strong laughter. His skull flushes a bright cyan, “OH - AH, I MEAN, UM…”

  
Red’s still laughing when he dumps a pile of collected stones next to where Blue’s still seated by his little pit. As if the past few minutes haven’t been shock enough, Red plops down next to Blue, only a foot away.

  
“a piece of shit house made of dirt, grass, and broken dreams, heheh…” Red’s laughter trails off amicably, with a loud sigh. “my dad was fuckin’ crazy, man.”

  
“... I SEE.” Still doesn’t give Blue much context, but he’s learned more about Red from that interaction than he has all day, so he counts it as a win in his book. Maybe he’s being too optimistic, but he’s always been that way. “... DO YOU WANT TO LEARN HOW TO MAKE A FIRE?”

  
“...” Red sighs, loudly, like Blue’s just asked him to do an undesirable chore. “... this don’t mean we’re friends, you hear me? i’m just… lettin’ ya teach me so i can escape easier.” He grouches.

  
The return of his snark is such a relief that Blue can only laugh off the lack-luster threat. As if he and Razz would let Red run away, what a ridiculous thought.

  
And… as if someone would run away from their SOULmate… the idea is ridiculous. To Blue, at least, who, as previously mentioned, is a hopeless romantic with an emphasis on hopeless. Razz is usually more realistic about things like this, but he’s off setting up the alarm and making sure it's safe for the night to camp.

  
“SNRK… OKAY, RED…” Blue pats the area beside him for Red to pull up. When he reluctantly pulls up next to Blue, the bandit begins his demonstration. “FIRST THING’S FIRST, WHEN YOU’RE MAKING A FIRE OUTSIDE, YOU HAVE TO BE CAREFUL THAT YOU WON’T SET THE LANDSCAPE ON FIRE.”

  
Blue gestures to the small grove their in, and the floor. “BUILDING IT ON GROUND WITH NO GRASS IS PREFERABLE, SAND OR DIRT IF YOU CAN. YOU WANNA CLEAR A GOOD AREA AROUND WHERE YOU WANT TO MAKE THE FIRE, AND MAKE SURE IT’S NOT TOO CLOSE TO YOUR CAMP…”

  
Red crosses his legs and props his chin on his palm while he listens to Blue, sockets getting more and more lidded. It’s almost completely dark by now, but monsters have fairly good night vision. It means Blue can see how Red’s sharp grin softens to something soft and tired.

  
“THEN YOU DIG A SMALL HOLE, LIKE THIS ONE, AND PUT SOME STONES AROUND IT LIKE SO - “ Blue looks away from Red to set up the ring as he describes it. “AND YOU WANT TO SET UP THE FIRE WITH THE LOGS PROPPED UP ON EACH OTHER WITH YOUR KINDLING IN THE MIDDLE. YOUR KINDLING IS WHAT YOU CATCH FIRST, AND IT’LL SET FIRE TO THE WOOD.”

  
Blue looks back to Red, to see if he understands, just in time to see that his captive is yawning silently. Adorable. Blue’s eye lights may or may not have blipped into hearts momentarily.

  
“... keep talkin’, weirdo.”

  
Red gives Blue a pointed look to let the taller skeleton know that he’s been caught. Shamelessly, Blue grins and pulls out his little match box. It’s half-empty and his other boxes are back on his horse. He’ll have to get more at the next town they hit.

  
“I’M SURE YOU KNOW HOW TO LIGHT A MATCH, SO I WON’T PATRONIZE YOU.” Blue strikes the match once, the red tip catching flawlessly into a lovely little flame. He tosses it into the kindling, watching as the small gathering catches quickly and spreads to the wood he’d gathered.

  
Red seems just as mesmerized by the flames when Blue looks back to check, but another set of eye lights watching from the edge of the trees startles him. It’s only Razz, though. Blue has to wonder how long the other’s been watching him and Red…

  
The sourpuss expression is back. Blue isn’t sure if it’s because he’s cozying up to Red or if it’s because Red’s slightly cozying back. The cheerful bandit waves him over nonetheless.

  
Razz stomps over. It seems bratty, but really, Blue can tell he doesn’t want to shock Red with his arrival. Secret sweetheart.

  
He’s got his blanket in hand. Blue’s is back on the horse he’d abandoned, sadly. Razz’s blanket always was softer, anyways. He hands it to Blue who takes it gratefully. “WE HAVE BEANS AND BEANS, WHAT DO YOU WANT?” Razz asks sarcastically, ignoring the way Red shifts away at his arrival with only a _small_ tinge of hurt.

  
“BEANS SOUND GOOD, DON’T YOU THINK, RED?” Blue looks over to their smaller SOULmate. Red shrugs.

  
“whatever.” He answers.

  
Razz rolls his eye lights and takes a seat on the opposite side of Blue to put down the other supplies he’d been carrying - their pot and a large can of beans. Razz gets to work, opening the can up easily with a summoned bone and dumping the contents into the pot. He uses another bone construct to hold it over the fire at a reasonable distance.

  
Meanwhile, Blue takes up the blanket and drapes it over Red’s shoulders. The tiny monster gives the smallest sleepy ‘thank you’ and snuggles into the fabric as he watches the flames and waits for the food to be ready.

  
When it is, Razz pours the beans back into the can and they each pass it around, taking a bit for themselves until it’s empty. Blue can see that Red has some reservations about putting his mouth where Blue and Razz’s have been, but he puts it aside like he had earlier with the canteen.

  
Razz only lingers for a few minutes after the food is gone, pushing himself up and brushing off his pants. “I’LL TAKE WATCH NOW.”

  
Blue nods, “BE CAREFUL, LOVE.”

  
Razz’s skull flushes at the nickname, but he pretends he isn’t flustered at all when he clears his throat. “OF COURSE.” He turns to Red, next, who looks shocked and slightly nervous to receive his attention. “MAKE SURE THIS ONE ACTUALLY RESTS, WILL YOU?”

  
Blue pouts when Red lets out a little snicker, “I’M NOT A BABYBONES…”

  
“NO, YOU ONLY ACT LIKE ONE MOST OF THE TIME.” And then Razz is off, leaving Blue and Red alone once again. But the privacy is just an illusion. Blue knows that Razz is only a few feet away, hidden up in a tree to watch over his two SOULmates.

  
The urge to stay up longer and watch Red more, maybe even talk with Red more is strong, but Blue knows that Razz is right. The ache is returning now that he has nothing else to think about. Blue’s really over exerted himself today…

  
“LET’S SLEEP, RED.” Blue tells the other, leading him up to the tree where Red had been sitting all afternoon to lean against the trunk.

  
Blue settles easily, lightly tugging some of the blanket wrapped around Red to cover him as well. Red concedes the blanket easily.

  
“how do you know i’m not going to run when you’re sleeping like an idiot?” Red asks. There’s no threat in his voice, though. Just curiosity. “or that my brother won’t find you?”

  
“RAZZ IS KEEPING WATCH.” Blue says like it explains everything.

  
“you trust him that much?” Red’s voice is a whisper that time.

  
“OF COURSE, HE’S MY SOULMATE.” Blue replies, only to realize a moment later that he’s misspoken. He’s too used to Razz being his SOULmate. But he’s _their_ SOULmate now. It’s too small of a mistake to correct himself, though, so he just lets Red contemplate.

  
… Until the silence is too much.

  
“RED?”

  
“just sleep, blue balls.” Red sticks his glowing Red tongue out at Blue childishly, “stop botherin’ me with your stupid-loud voice. or do ya just wanna lead edge right to ya?” There’s a teasing quality about Red now that wasn’t present earlier, and it delights Blue. But there’s something else under the teasing too complex to catch while Blue is as tired as he is.

  
“...” Blue closes his eye sockets for a few minutes, but can’t stop himself and laughs. “I CAN’T. YOU SCARED ME WITH ALL THIS TALK OF GETTING CAUGHT, NOW YOU HAVE TO PUT ME TO SLEEP.”

  
It’s just as teasing as Red had been, and the small skeleton can tell. But he only looks away and sighs before roughly pulling Blue closer.

  
The taller monster is too surprised to fight back when Red settles Blue’s skull in his lap and rearranges the blanket around the two of them. “... fuckin’ bastard bandit…” He grumbles, “razz is watchin’, yada yada, ‘member?”

  
“... I’M TOO EXCITED TO FALL ASLEEP.” Blue tells the other honestly, even though he can feel sleep pulling at his sockets. It’s kept at bay by his desire to consume more and more interaction with Red.

  
“stupid.” Red sighs.

  
Blue thinks that’s the end of it and is prepared to appriciate the position Red’s dragged him into, right up until Red starts to hum. It’s unsteady and nervous, but it’s quickly accompanied by rhythmic clapping.

  
_“blackbird singin’ in the dead of night…”_

Blue’s sockets widen considerably as Red starts to sing. His voice is still nervous, but it’s pleasant to listen to.

  
_“take these broken wings an’ learn to fly…_

_all your life… you were only waitin’ fer this moment to arise”_

  
“WHAT IS THAT SONG?” Blue can’t stop himself from asking. Red flusters and curses a few times at being interrupted.

  
“‘s a fuckin’ song song! shuddup! i can’t fuckin’ sing, i know, ya wanted me t’ putcha t’ sleep…” Red puts his skull in his hands to hide. It’s adorable but Blue’s too sore to be thinking about making any moves.

  
“NO NO NO, I JUST HAVE NEVER HEARD IT BEFORE.” Blue remedies.

  
“‘course not, my dad’s mom taught it to ‘im.” Red grouses, “are ya gunna shut up or should i?”

  
“NO NO, PLEASE CONTINUE.”

  
The clapping starts up again, and when Red starts humming again, Blue joins him. It only makes Red falter for a second before he continues.

  
_“blackbird singin’ in the dead of night,_

_take these broken wings an’ learn to fly.._

_all your life,_

_you were only waiting fer this moment to arise_

  
_blackbird singin’ in the dead of night…_

_take these sunken eyes an’ learn to see..._

_all your life,_

_you were only waiting for this moment to be free…_

  
_blackbird, fly…_

_blackbird, fly…”_

  
Red doesn’t even _finish_ the song before Blue is snoring. It doesn’t take long before Red follows him into the land of dreams, the fire crackling softly before the two of them.

  
…

  
Red wakes up a little later, confused and bones feeling gritty. Somwhow Blue's entire upper body had shuffeled into his lap, and the weight pins Red's legs down firmly. There's a figure crouched in front of the dwindling fire a few feet off. It turns out to be Razz, who looks surprised that Red is awake. He's holding a canteen in hand.

"GO BACK TO SLEEP." He says, far too gently for the bandit that Red knows him to be.

Red ignores the flimsy order. "wh-what're ya doin'?" He slurs sleepliy.

Razz holds up the canteen. "FIRE SAFETY." He explains. "ALWAYS KEEP AN EYE ON THE FIRE, KEEP A BUCKET OF WATER HANDY, AND PUT OUT THE FIRE COMPLETELY WHEN YOU'RE FINISHED."

Red's too tired to give a real response, so he snorts out something dumb before falling back asleep.

"we don' even fuckin' _have_ eyes..."

Razz waits until he hears soft snores from Rex to respond. "METAPHORICALLY, DIPSHIT..." He hates how fond he sounds, but he figures be can spare some fondness for his SOULmate of all monsters.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i sat down to write this chapter and stood up like 4 hours later... it got away from me but wygd lolol. we'll get bonding with razz and red soon, don't worry ;). but first,i'm sure you all want to know what's happeni g with edge!
> 
> sorry for the long absesnce! having tech problems + i took a break for finals. still not 100% rn soooooo
> 
> enjoy my small gift of whatever this ship is called!
> 
> ALSO - - 
> 
> in case you don't know the song i used in this chapter, it's 'Blackbird' by The Beatles.

**Author's Note:**

> _______  
> so at the beginning of quarantine i wrote a bunch and then ran into a big ol' pile of WRITER'S BLOCK and BURNOUT! i've had this idea for awhile and it's the only thing my brain will let me write, so i'm hoping that if i write enough of this then i'll get motivation for my other works or something.
> 
> enjoy!
> 
> leave a comment if you'd like to or want to chat ;)!!  
> ________
> 
> by the way here's my [tumblr (@beanniebenn)](https://beanniebenn.tumblr.com/)


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